Joseph bipczisfski atfd chables tisch



UNITED, STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOSEPH RIPCZINSKI AND CHARLES TISCH, JR., OF W'AUSAU, WISCONSIN.

FIRE-ESCAPE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 280,957, dated July 1o, 1883.

' Application filed April 11,1883. (No modem' 1 4 To all whom it may concern:

Be it known thatwe, Josnrn RIrczINsKI and CHARLEs TIsorI, J r., citizens of the United States, residing at Wausau, in the county of Marathon and State of Wisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fire-Escapes; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The object of our invention is to provide a hre-escape which shall always bein position and ready for use, and when not actually in use to serve as a cornice for the building ton which it is attached.

The invention consists, essentially, of a movable cornice which, when not in use, occupies the usual position at the top of theface of the building. It is designed that this cornice, extending across the face of the building, may be lowered from its position at the top to the ground by means of wire ropes, which are out of sight except when the escape is in use.

In the drawings, Figure 1 represents the cornice loweredto a position just below the sills of the top row of windows. Fig. 2 shows a transverse section of the cornice and a longitudinal vertical section of the tubes through which the wire rope passes, and on the face of which the escape slides. Fig. 3 represents a well-known mechanism which we prefer using as a motor for moving the cornice, and Fig. 4 is a crosssection of one of the tubes, showing a small Tiron, which is firmly attached to the back of the cornice and slides in a slot in the face of the tube, thus holding the escape to the building and preventing its swaying.

A is the movable cornice constituting the escape, lowered so as to be accessible from the windows. It may be of wood or any of the materials commonly used for such purposes. As is shown in Fig. 2, there should be a low railing, forming the face of the cornice, to prevent those occupying it from falling. The window-caps shown in the drawings are represented as fiush with the wall; but where a projecting cap is used suitable notches or cuts may be made in the cornice to allow its free movement up and down. As indicated in Fig. 2, there should be built on every building to which the escape is attached a projection, m, against which the escape rests when in position as a cornice, and which protects the esca e from the weather. The cornice'is held in place or lowered by means of wire cables vor ropes n, which are out of sight except when the escape is in use, and which run over the pulleys c c c and extend down through the iron tubes B B around sheave p, and are wound or unwound on the pulleys d d d. p

The escape is fastened to the building and held from swaying by means of a T-irouA attachment, f, which slides in slots out in' the face of the iron tubes. An iron shaft, g g, extends along the front of and at the base of the building, and in practice preferably concealed from view under' the sidewalk on which the pulleys d. d d are attached. The lines w x a: show the level of the sidewalk.

The escape will be raised or lowered by means of the device shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings, which is also under the walk, but at a place easily accessible. This device is operated by a crank attached to a small shaft passing through the gear-wheel This wheel gears with the wheel j. The gear-wheel j is fastened to the shaft K, upon which shaft is a worm-screw, which operates the pinion Z, and therethrough the shaft g and drums d. By means of the several gears and of the worm K, the escape can easily be operated by one person.

It should be observed that although the escape may be heavily loaded it will not move unless operated bythe crank, the gearing and worm forming a perfect lock.

It is obvious that the cornice may be divided into sections and each section operated as described for the entire cornice.

Having thus fully described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Fatemi, is

l. A iire-escape consisting of the combination of a suspended movable cornice. and means, substantially as described, for operating the same.

2. In a fire-escape, the combination oi' a movable cornice, guide and track tubes d, T- irons f, pulleys c c c, sheaves p, shafts g, and spools d d d, all for the purpose specied.

In testimony whereof we afix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

v JOSEPH RIPCZINSKI. CHARLES TISCH, JR.

IOO 

